“Lucy Sophia, no more.” I shake my head and reach for the container full of red glitter and take it from her sticky hands. “You’re done.”
Lucy’s mouth falls open, and her eyebrows pinch together as she glares up at me as if I’ve just kicked a puppy or kitten. “Daddy, you can’t put a limit on the spirit of Christmas. Besides, Tinsel loves glitter. Look how happy she is.”
I glare down at our cat, who keeps tapping one of the homemade ornaments Lucy has been working on. Each time Tinsel sends it flying across the table, a trail of loose glitter follows. It’severywhere. She’s lucky she’s such a loving cat and has wiggled her way into my heart, too. I hate that she’ll be home by herself so much while we’re gone, but a pet-sitter will come every other day to feed and check on her. It will be fine. She won’t even care if she’s missing the holidays. She’s a cat. A damn sweet one, though. And the way she and Lucy stick together like Velcro all the time is adorable.
A red cloud of glitter floats through the air as Tinsel bats the ornament again.
“Okay, little wolf. You’re done for today. We need to finish packing for our trip, anyway. We’re leaving first thing in the morning.”
She sighs dramatically, and the palm of my hand twitches.
Then she reaches out and pats the cat’s head, sending a plume of glitter into the air. I can’t help but smile. It’s a damn good thing I’m secure in my manhood because I have a feeling I’ll be sparkly for the entire year. Maybe even the next two.
Lucy looks up at me, her eyes round and innocent. “Tinsel is going to be so sad when we’re gone. Maybe she should come with us.”
Over my dead body are we bringing our fucking cat on our Christmas vacation.
The next morning…
Lucy
Daddy picksup the cat carrier and loads Tinsel into the back of the SUV before shutting the door. I smile and wait on the porch with Ellie until Wolf and Hawk come to collect us. Even though it’s in the fifties in Seattle, our Daddies have us bundled up like we’re going to freeze to death out here. They’re always so overprotective. It’s one of my favorite things about my Daddy. That and his big dick.
“I can’t believe he let you bring Tinsel,” Ellie says as she bounces on her toes, making the pom-poms on her stocking hat dance.
Laughter bubbles out of me as the men approach. I couldn’t believe it, either. But then I reminded Wolf that even though Tinsel is a cat, she’s still part of our family and we can’t leave her behind during the holidays. As much as Wolf would never admit it, I’d bet that he’d been feeling bad about it, too. My Daddy is a deadly, grumpy, impatient man, but to me, he’s none of those things. He’s gentle and caring, with the patience of a saint.
“Are you sure Daisy and Tinsel will be okay back there together?” I ask when Wolf and Hawk jog up the steps.
Wolf looks at me, his eyes narrowed. “You’re asking now if they’ll be okay? After we already got them loaded separately in their crates, so they can’t mangle each other?”
Ellie and I giggle, and even Hawk cracks a small smile. Which is saying something for him because Hawk’s usual expressions are grumpy and grumpier.
“Let’s go, babies,” Hawk finally says as he nudges both of us toward the steps where Wolf is waiting to offer a hand for us as we go down.
It’s surprising that Ellie and I are allowed to leave the house, given how protective our Daddies are. They treat us as if we’re precious.
“Are you excited, little wolf?” Daddy buckles me in, adjusting the straps so they’re exactly where they’re supposed to be before he covers me with my favorite soft blanket.
“I can’t wait,” I whisper, reaching up to touch his beard. “Thank you for this. We haven’t had snow on Christmas since the year we met, so this is going to be extra special.”
Wolf stares at me, then smiles and leans down to press a kiss to my forehead. “Every day with you is special.”
Butterflies erupt low in my belly, and I pull him toward me for one more kiss. When he straightens, he pulls my pacifier from his pocket and clips it onto my sweater, so it doesn’t fall onto the floor during the drive.
“How long of a drive is it again?” Ellie asks once we’re all in the SUV and pulling out of the driveway.
“Six hours,” Hawk answers as he steers through the neighborhood where we all live.
Knox, Addie, Ash, and Kylie are driving together, too, and as we pass Knox’s driveway, they back out in their own SUV.
“Daddy, we need to race them.” Ellie nudges Hawk’s shoulder.
Hawk grunts and continues going at the same speed. “We’re not racing them. Besides, both you girls are in diapers, and I’m sure Addie and Kylie aren’t.”
Ellie and I look at each other, grinning.
“We won’t have to stop at all. With how often Kylie pees, it’s going to take them forever,” Ellie says as she bounces in her seat.
